


the dawn of a bohemian millennium

by 2000lines (hqkaiden)



Category: ASTRO (Band), MAS (Korea Band), NCT (Band), SF9 (Band), Stray Kids (Band), The Boyz (Korea Band), VARSITY (Korea & China Band)
Genre: 00z line, 2000s Kids, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Guardian Angels, Alternate Universe - Mythology, Ambiguous Relationships, Gen, Trans Character, Type 1 Diabetes, dongju has t1d, i'm not making any relationships set in stone.. it's all free real estate here ., more tags to be added later on
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-11
Updated: 2019-01-27
Packaged: 2019-06-08 16:27:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 6,246
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15247254
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hqkaiden/pseuds/2000lines
Summary: little ficlets of the kids born in 2000, featuring some great quotes, such as:"it's called dish soap, sunwoo, not clothes soap.""where's the dick? false advertisement.""bold of you to assume i was born at all."





	1. dish soap is not for clothes, sunwoo

**Author's Note:**

> uhh okay like promised, here's the drabble series! this is a very anticlimactic start to it but uh. yeah! if there's any quotes from the tfln account that yall would like to see elaborated on, please let me know! and if you have any ideas of things i could write, feel free to leave a comment! rated t for cursing also yes i'm putting mostly everyone in the character tag already even though only two (2) people have been included so far 
> 
> and uh if ur not following the account on twitter then you should do that maybe (@2000zTFLN)
> 
> (prompt words for this drabble: laundry + bathtub)

“why are wet clothes so heavy,” sunwoo groans, dropping a waterlogged hoodie into the bathtub in front of him. he sits back on his feet and brings a hand up to wipe at the sweat on his forehead—which really does nothing but make his forehead even wetter.

“maybe it’s because they’re almost as dense as you,” renjun pipes in from his spot in the doorway. sunwoo turns and glares, sticking out his tongue for good effect.

“i’m _not_ dense. how was i supposed to know that too much dish soap would break the washing machine?!”

“it’s called _dish_ soap, sunwoo, not _clothes_ soap! what compelled you to even use it instead of laundry detergent?” sunwoo picks up a wet sock and chucks it in the general direction of him, though he misses by a few feet.

“because, i wanted to. i wanted to and damage control was not around. you can’t blame me in this situation.” sunwoo grumbles. he goes back to fiddling with the clothes in the tub, lifting and wringing the water out before throwing them into a basket behind him.

“yeah, i can. and i will! when the landlord comes and asks why the washing machine is broken, i’m telling him it was your fault,” he scoffs and turns on his heel, walking out of the bathroom and leaving sunwoo behind to gripe and grumble at his retreating figure. 

 

(though, he comes back five minutes later with his own pair of gloves and situates himself in front of the bathtub too. when sunwoo gives him a questioning glance he just swats at him, muttering under his breath. “i’ve got a shirt somewhere in here, okay.”  
  
“yeah, sure. you’re a big fucking softie, you aren’t fooling anyone.”

sunwoo promptly gets his head dunked into the soapy water.)


	2. bold of you to assume i was born at all

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> han and dawon bond over the trans dude struggles.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay i'm posting this one too since i like it a lot but! yes in this both dawon and han are trans. why? 'cause i said so! nah but really this was a very self-indulgent thing that i wrote during pride month and i was gonna post it then but i decided to hold off and post it here so! uh yeah have this haha! also comment requests/suggestions! thanks, love yall! 
> 
> (check out the twitter account: @2000zTFLN)

“okay but dude, first month on testosterone? wild. it was the same as like, when trailers for movies come out, but the movie itself doesn’t get released for another two months. that’s how it felt.”

jisung sits up and nods rapidly, popping a chip into his mouth. “exactly, oh my god. i swear, 10 minutes after my first shot i was standing in front of the mirror like, ‘why isn’t it working, where’s the dick. false advertisement.’”

dawon snorts from where he’s laying down. “you were kidding, right?”

“yeah, yeah, duh. it still would've been nice, though.”

“that’s fair.” dawon sits up too, throwing a pillow behind his back for support. “you know what was _amazing_ , though? top surgery.”

jisung falls back against the bed, as if the idea itself just knocked him out completely. “ooooh my god, talk about getting something off your chest. i was so sore afterwards, and couldn’t really do much active stuff for a while, but it was so worth it.”

“i feel ya. god, i felt so tired after it from the anesthesia but man,” he holds up an ‘ok’ sign with his hand, “best thing in the world.”

jisung nods. “did you still have, you know,” —he motions to his own chest— “numbness? even after a while? ‘cause like, it’s still numb in the nips area for me, and it’s been a good 9 months.”

“yeah, a little? it’s pretty much gone, now that it’s been almost two years for me. your nerves are probably still growing back, y’know. give it another 6 months, maybe.”

“yeah. how bad is your scarring, by the way?”

“not bad at all! i used some anti-scarring cream stuff, or whatever it’s called, and it’s not as visible as it would’ve been. plus just like, letting it heal on its own first and being gentle with the skin there helps tons.”

“oh, word? i’ll be sure to do that.”

“and i think i still have some of that cream if you want it, too.” dawon stretches his legs, resting his arms behind his head. “i mean this is the most normal way possible, but damn, i’m so fucking glad you’re trans too."

“what, why’s that?”

"i just didn't have anyone to talk to about this for the longest. like, if i tried to talk to a cis friend about all this stuff, it always got bogged down with the pointless questions. 'what's your real name', 'what if you change your mind', and my all-time favorite, 'were you born a boy or a girl?' awful bold of you to assume i was born at all!" jisung laughs, and dawon pauses to let out a chuckle of his own. "and like there were online forums and shit, but i didn’t have anyone in person that i could relate to."

jisung nods. “i get that. i didn’t really have anyone, either. i mean, i have seungmin, but it’s different with them. there’s another layer when it comes to you, i guess? plus, you’ve been at this whole ‘transitioning’ thing for a lot longer than i have, so it’s nice to have someone to go to about this. you’re like my trans trainer, if you will.”

“good god, that just completely killed the sentimental mood that was building up. good job, hanji. good job.”

“just like how the testosterone completely killed my period! woo!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> bonus text:
> 
> someone: were you born a boy or a girl  
> dawon: bold of you to assume i was born at all. i'm just a rock that grew legs


	3. you and i are more than friends (we're like a really small gang)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "y'know, we're all more than friends," donghyuck says. 
> 
> "what are we, then?"
> 
> "a really small gang. and renjun is our leader, since he's scary," supplies eric.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> helloooo, sorry it took so long for an update. this chapter is kinda different! i found a random word generator and took the words it gave me and tried to write something from them, so here's this! the timelines and verses for these are all different (or maybe they're all the same idk) so interpret that however you wanna i guess! uhhh yeah lmk if there's something specific y'all wanna see and uhhhh enjoy? thanks 
> 
> (follow the twitter account if u wanna: @2000zTFLN)

**worm**

yunho holds the worm away from his body, face contorted into an expression of disgust as it wiggles between his fingers. a camera zooms in on his face to catch his reaction, and he does his best to not scowl at it.

“this is so _gross_.” he turns to face sunwoo, who’s already got his bait on the end of his fishing hook.

“quit complaining and hurry up,” he says, throwing his line into the river below them. “the faster we finish this mission then the closer we get to winning. and we can’t afford to lose again, dummy.”

yunho sighs. he knows sunwoo is right, so he sucks it up and gets to work fixing his fishing pole. “you owe me for making me suffer through this, by the way.”

 

**strike**

“that’s two strikes for you, hyunjin!” renjun takes a marker and adds another tally mark next to hyunjin’s name, ignoring the indignant shouts of protest.

“what! why! i didn’t do anything! this isn’t fair,” hyunjin argues.

“no, but i looked at you and got annoyed, so that’s why.”

“bitch.”

 

**bucket + broom**

“i told you guys that party was a bad idea. i told you, i told you, _i told you_ ,” seungmin complains as he grabs a broom to swat at the strings of confetti strewn across the floor.

yunho groans from the bathroom, momentarily pausing his sickness. “shut up, seungmiiiiiin.”

“i’m just saying! look at this mess. and we have to get it cleaned up before the landlord comes back, ugh.”

right then donghyuck stumbles into the kitchen, almost tripping over a bucket from last night filled with questionable substances. he collapses into a chair, practically throwing himself across the dining table. “god, my head is going to implode.”

“sucks to be you. here, get to cleaning,” seungmin hands him a water and some painkillers, leaving a trash bag beside him as well, and goes to wake up a few of the others.

 

**castle**

“woah! look, look! why are so many people gathered, sunwoo?”

“because of you, your highness,” sunwoo pinches the bridge of his nose, elbowing eric’s side. “please sit down. the royal court is expecting you in one piece.”

“that’s no fun. i’d like to see them have to figure out how to put me back together,” eric settles back into his seat, kicking his feet up on the console in front of them. though he would typically correct such behavior, sunwoo just shakes his head and peers out his own window.

“aren’t they kicking up too much of a fuss for this visit, though? it’s not that big of a deal! i mean— _really_ , are those banners necessary?” eric comments, twisting his face into a slight frown.

“most princes would fawn at the sight of this turnout, your highness,” he pauses, sighing. “though, you’re not like most princes, are you.”

“you say it as though it’s a bad thing. i pride myself on diverging from the normal.”

“that may just be your downfall.”

the statements floats in the air, heavy and prominent. eric shifts away, watching as the streets of the town fade into the dirt road leading to the obtrusive castle. guards dressed in articulate gold and red uniforms line the road close to the towers, and a group of them come to escort the prince from his carriage to the grand hall. the guards bow before taking their leave, yielding eric to enter the room on his own accord.

  
“maybe that’s what i want, sunwoo.”

 

**dice, rotten, + pizza**

“whoever rolls the highest number doesn’t get to eat any pizza.”

“why do we always have to do this! we can never have a peaceful meal in which everyone eats,” chani throws his hands up, slumping in his chair.

“so are you offering to be the one to not eat, then?” donghyuck raises a brow and holds the dice towards him.

“fuck no, give me those,” he grabs the dice and rolls them across the table, clapping when they land on a 2 and 3. and after ten minutes of dice-rolling and one noise complaint from the neighbors, he claps again when han is left peering at the empty pizza boxes in disdain.

“guys, what am i gonna do? i’ve got medicine to take, i have to eat _something_.”

kiwook grabs a rotten banana from the fruit bowl on the counter and tosses it to him. “here! bananas are good for you.”

 

**juicy + cake**

“so, how is it? is it good?” sanha leans forward, eager and enthusiastic to hear what they have to say.

“it’s, uh... it’s... juicy? yeah! very... very juicy.” jaemin swallows the bite of cake in his mouth, his expression only slightly wobbly. “it’s really different!”  
  
hyunjoon tilts his head away from sanha, and with his voice lowered, asks, “is cake supposed to be juicy, though? moist, maybe, but... _juicy_?”

 

**attic + ghost**

the moment his phone starts to ring at 2:43am is the moment sunwoo begins to think of all the ways he can murder sohn youngjae and get away with it. “ _what_.”  
  
“sunwoo, there is an australian ghost in my attic, please come help me,” he begs, and clearly sounds panicked. though, he’s freaked out over finding spiderwebs under a couch, so really, he’s probably overreacting.

“there is not a ghost in your attic, dumbass. and even if there was—why would it be australian? we’re in korea, buddy,” he grunts as he reaches over to flip on his bedside lamp.

“no, no. there is a voice coming from upstairs and it is most certainly australian! please come help me, i’m scared,” eric whines again. he’s too tired to fight it and eric could probably keep this up for days, so he gives in; and 15 minutes later he’s outside eric’s house.

he doesn’t even get the chance to ring the doorbell before eric is tugging him inside and slamming the door shut. he also doesn’t even get the chance to kick his shoes off, for eric is pulling him upstairs despite sunwoo’s very firm complaints.

“can i at least breathe first, good god,” he mutters, stepping back as eric stands guard next to the door.

“before you go in there, i should warn you: the ghost-guy is kinda mad at me,” eric whispers, eyes darting from side to side. sunwoo groans and shoves past him, throwing the door open. he scans the room before him, squinting at the darkness, before turns on his heel to face eric again.

“you woke me up at 3am for this? sohn youngjae, i’m really this clo—,” he hisses, throwing his hands in the air, when a tight, wobbly voice cuts him off, and it is most definitely australian.

“could the both of you shut up? some of us like sleep, y’know, and i’ve already heard enough from that idiot,” the ghostly figure creature thing rasps out while pointing a wispy finger at eric, as sunwoo simultaneously lets out a loud, high pitch screech.

there’s an australian ghost in eric's attic, and they don't really know what to do about it.


	4. i guess it's an inside joke (or maybe i just don't get it)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the dreamies' take on how things roll around here.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> uhh this is just some... nonsense. wheezes. this is from like 6 months ago and it's not very good but i needed to post something so just take it i guess! sorry that it's not very hq or as ~good~ as other stuff..
> 
> i'm working on something longer and it's at about 3k already so... stay tuned for that if u wanna \o/
> 
> (also im sorry the twit is dead atm, i've had summer classes and now reg. school started and this year is stressful! my apologies orz)

“well, no. chani is sorta like our mom,” donghyuck explains during dinner. renjun, jeno, and jaemin nod along, while taeyong takes another moment to try and grasp it.

 

“so—,” yuta picks up another piece of food, pausing for a moment while chewing. “who’s—what’s everyone else’s role, then? or is that not a thing? is chani just the only one with a title to his name?”

 

donghyuck raises his hand and points to himself. "i—i instigate. i keep things running." 

 

jeno clears his throat. “i mean, like, renjun and hyunjin bitch at each other a lot, so i guess they get the feuding arch-nemesis title, or whatever it is.” taeyong frowns at the language but doesn’t move to correct it. “jaemin, seungmin, sunwoo, and i kinda keep things in order when chani isn’t around, so i guess us four are the older sibling-type role? jisung, sanha, felix, eric, and hwall are the chaotic evils of us all, so. dawon is an angel, yunho is just kinda... there.” 

 

“aren’t there more of you all, though?” ten asks.

 

“yeah. jinyoung, kiwook, dongmyeong, taeeun, and bomin just kinda come and go as they please. dongju too, though he’s only ever around when kiwook or dongmyeong are.” jaemin pauses and pulls a face. “we don’t really talk to the girls that much? weird. we’ve got a guys group chat and a girls group chat, and then one with all of us together. it’s living hell.”

 

jeno jumps, as if he remembered something, and quickly swallows a sip of his drink. “oh, and—donghyuck has a big fat crush on dawon.”

 

it takes jaemin, renjun, and jaehyun to restrain donghyuck from lunging across the table.


	5. die like no one's watching

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> dongju's blood sugar is low and dongmyeong tries to be a good brother.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nothing I Ever Post Here Will Ever Be Finished (im sorry have this half-finished, half-assed drabble lol)
> 
> uh. i know the twitter page kinda died but school has been Kicking My Ass so i'm sorry for that lol. uh anyway in this dongju has type 1 diabetes (t1d) and most of this is based on my own personal experiences with it so it may not reflect other experiences/perspectives! oh also there's a little bit of a needle/blood mention but it's really short! just a heads-up anyway

truth be told, dongju would very much like to not be in this situation either, but it’s not really up to him. well—it is but it isn’t. 

 

he’s only sat criss-cross on the kitchen floor because he’d woken up not even 10 minutes ago, his hands and legs shaking as if he were in the middle of an earthquake. it made it hard for him to march his way through the dorms, his blood cold and slow and doing nothing to help his head stop spinning. it had gotten too hard for him to stand on his wobbly knees, forcing him to slide down to the floor. he can’t be bothered to focus his eyes on one spot, instead roaming his gaze around the dimly lit room.  _ wow, that’s a weirdly-shaped... has there always been two chairs by the counter? _

maybe he blacks out or maybe he just stops thinking, but next thing he knows he’s halfway down the hallway, leaning against the wall. dongmyeong’s room is somewhere down here, he just knows it is, but the doors are all blending together and he can’t even tell the difference between his own two hands so the chances of him finding it are slim to none. 

 

dongju tries to take another step but something must happen along the way because he ends up on his knees, having just barely caught himself. “woah...” 

 

he wriggles around, scooting to the closest door and knocking with the little strength he has left. his hands fall beside him and he shuts his eyes, his head lolling against the wall.  _ it’d be so easy to fall asleep right now _ —if he just kept his eyes closed a little longer he’d go to sleep for good, and it’d feel so nice, he’s been too tired recently anyways. the door beside him opens but he doesn’t stir, slumping down even more. 

 

a hand reaches out to shake his shoulder and dongju finally cracks open an eye, squinting at a figure that he can’t seem to make out. “h... hi. who’re... who’re you? i don’t know... you.” 

 

the person scoffs and brings a hand up to cusp dongju’s cheek, going to feel his forehead. “you’re hot.” dongju just hums and leans against the hand, when it suddenly pulls away. the person walks to the door he came out of, and dongju scrambles to grab at his leg. 

 

“w—wait, don’t wake mom up,” he slurs. the person, whom dongju has now realized is dongmyeong, stutters in his steps and turns on his heel. 

 

“ _ who? _ ”

 

“mom... don’t wake her up. she was at work late last night,” he points a finger to his wrist, as if there were a watch there. “laaaate.” 

 

“dongj—,” dongmyeong sighs, running a hand through his hair. “mom isn’t here. we’re not at home. you’re—your blood sugar is just low. have you checked it?”

 

“checked what! i don’t... need,” he stares across the hallway before slowly finishing his sentence. “to check anything... it’s fine... it’s not—loooow.” 

 

“it is! you’re! look at you,” with a sigh he walks away towards the kitchen, leaving dongju sitting on the floor and whining behind him. 

 

“dongmyeoooong, you’re just leaving me! wait... wait for,” he moves as though he’s gonna get up, but fumbles and falls down on his hands and knees; nothing happens but the sound of it is enough to make dongmyeong turn around in concern. 

 

he ends up rushing back over to help him up and to the kitchen, one arm under his and the other against the wall. “don’t do that, idiot.” 

 

dongju laughs, though it sounds weird and garbled. “that’s not my name! how’d you forget my name.” 

 

“i dunno. it’s difficult to remember,” he sets dongju down on a chair by the counter, going to fumble around in the medicine cabinet. it takes him a minute but he finally finds dongju’s black box and pulls it down.

 

“needle, needle... where’s the needle?” he mumbles to himself. “there’s his meter... test strip... where is a  _ needle _ ?” 

 

“bag! my bag. it’s.. bag.” somehow, dongmyeong understands this and goes to grab said bag, which is laid haphazardly near the door, and after nearly a minute of digging around he victoriously holds up a needle. 

 

grabbing dongju’s hand, dongmyeong holds his twin’s pointer finger tight before quickly poking it with the needle and pressing it against the meter strip, the blood filling it up. it beeps for what seems like an eternity, and he’s moments away from chucking it at the wall when it lights up with a number.  _ 34 _ , it says, and dongmyeong feels like he’s the one that’s about to collapse. 

 

“it’s _ 34 _ , what were you thinking,” he groans. there’s a bottle of apple juice in the fridge, with dongju’s name scribbled lazily over it, specifically for times like this. dongmyeong doesn’t even bother with a cup, instead just handing his brother the entire container. “drink it.” 

 

dongju’s face contorts into a weird expression, one that, in any other given time, dongmyeong might have had the patience to figure out. but this isn’t it and he doesn’t, so he nudges the bottle in dongju’s hand. “i said  _ drink _ , idiot.” 

 

“i don’t wanna,” dongju slurs, setting the container on the counter. he moves to stand up but after a minute of him sitting there and not moving an inch, dongmyeong hands him the bottle once more. 

 

“drink it before you die.”

 

“‘m not gonna die! don’t say that,” he complains. he’s got a deathly glare going towards the bottle of juice, as if it were the one causing this scene and issue. “i don’ like apple juice.”

 

“just drink it, oh my  _ god _ . otherwise you’ll die and i’ll have to tell mom and our siblings that it was because you wanted orange juice instead of apple juice and then they’ll be mad at you for the rest of eternity! and so will i.”

 

“no! i don’t want to!” his voice is loud and he shoves the bottle away. dongmyeong throws his hands up, pushing his chair away from the counter. 

 

“fine! just die, then! see if i care!” 

 

“no! shut up. you’re being mean,” dongju’s voice gets quiet. “i don't wann’ die.”

 

“then drink the juice! please! i’m trying to help you, ju,” he flops down on the counter, resting his forehead against it. 

 

“i can’t, it’s gonna make me throw up,” he whines. “can’t have anythin’ liquid. ‘s gonna make me sick.” 

 

dongmyeong sighs, but resigns himself to hurriedly shuffling through the cupboards. he reaches for a bear-shaped bottle of honey and grabs a spoon from a drawer, before pouring some on it and handing it to dongju. “here. put the honey under your tongue while you eat it.”


	6. you will never be a god (not even in my eyes)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> yunho and sunwoo, guardian angel au. 950w, can be interpreted as platonic or romantic.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ok uhhh i cant really edit the formatting rn since im uploading it at school but i'll fix it later haha.. anyways! this has been in my drafts (along with 24 other pages of various bs) and i'm finally getting around to uploading it! 
> 
> this idea hasnt been really.. ~fleshed out~ yet and i dont really know the specifics and it doesn't really follow history OR greek mythology well but do i care? only a little! sorry for those that are gonna get bothered by the incorrect facts/info. it's also pretty short and there's not much to it but. oh well! 
> 
> uhh anyway enjoy i guess! it wasn't my aim to make this romantic so if it suits you, read it as so or just read it as platonic! plea s e dont question the pairing tho idk either (i don't know if sunwoo and yunho actually even know each other. they Might but. don't question it for ur sanity and mine). 
> 
> thanks for reading!

“you’re a shitty guardian angel, yunho,” sunwoo squints up at the deity in question, who’s sat up on the rail, teetering between falling down to the concrete or down into sunwoo’s embrace. he doesn’t know if it comes with being immortal or if it’s just a yunho thing, but there’s a soft, golden glow surrounding him that stands out against the darkness of midnight. 

 

“you seem to have forgotten that this is a punishment for me,” he presses a luminous finger to sunwoo’s forehead, staring in amazement as it lights up the skin beneath his touch; staring as if he’s not done this a million times before. “though at least i’ve got a decent mortal to look after.” 

 

“and yet you’re not very good at it,” sunwoo whispers this as quietly as his throat will let him. he doesn’t need to; they’re the only ones out here and away from peering eyes. yunho is shielding them from other mortals, so he’s not sure why sunwoo tries to hide. but he lets him anyway. it must be a mortal thing, to want to hide when your heart is radiating like his.

 

“i’m sorry. i’ll do better next time,” he trails his finger down to rest against sunwoo’s cheek. the glow moves with it, and radiates a faint, yellow light, diffused. yunho pulls him closer by his neck, leaning his forehead down to touch his. “i really will.”

 

“i was scared,” his voice catches in his throat and yunho’s heart (or what exists of it) clenches. “i was alone and you weren’t there.” 

 

“this is my first time being a guardian angel. i told you that, right? well, anyway, usually the Universe and Fate help out first-timers. but since i’m being punished, i don’t get that. i have to do this all on my own and it’s really hard and i’m making a bunch of mistakes, and i’m sorry you have to face the repercussions.” 

 

“why—why are you being punished? you never told me that. you’re always mentioning about how the Universe is punishing you, but what for?” he pulls his forehead away from yunho’s, leveling his gaze at him. his eyes are narrowed, but not in a way that would make yunho think he’s upset. he’s staring hard for answers, for something to calm his thoughts. 

 

“if i told you i think you’d hate me.”

 

“try me.” 

 

yunho slinks down from the railing to sit on the floor of the balcony, dangling his legs between the rails and over the edge. “i’m immortal, right? i’ve been 18 for as long as my soul remembers. it was—oh, man, when was it? it was probably at least two thousand years ago, maybe three.”

 

“you’ve been alive for that long?” sunwoo gasps. he’s moved down to sit beside yunho, leaning against his shoulder. 

 

“give or take a few decades, yeah. and i’ve only been partially alive, anyway. but that’s not the point—so two, three thousand years ago, that’s when the... korea was just coming around? kind of? it wasn’t the history of korea that you all know today, at least. but i wasn’t in korea, i was—i was in greece. the greeks. i started out greek, can you believe that—,” sunwoo laughs at that, “but i worked for zeus. he’s an actual guy, y’know! i was a messenger between the gods and the people down in athens. i was human, too. i didn’t start out immortal. i was just—i was normal. i don’t know how i got the job i did, but i did.” 

 

after a while, zeus took me as his own messenger. he made me a demigod of sorts—i forgot the actual term, but i was immortal thanks to him. from there on out i just... went crazy with it.” yunho shifts around in his spot, almost as if the topic itself makes him uncomfortable. 

 

“i’m not gonna sugarcoat it: i lost it. i killed people, i was an absolute terror. i thought... i thought that since zeus almighty himself made me immortal, that i was above mortal standards. i thought i was in a place of worship compared to them. it wasn’t pretty at all.” he feels sunwoo’s eyeing him, taking in the story and ingraining it into his brain alongside anything he ever knew about yunho. “i killed an actual descendant of zeus, too.”

 

he wants to curl in on himself, in the exact same way he’s seen mortals and sunwoo do many times before. he’s never felt more open and exposed, like his radiance is dull and faded and sunwoo can see through it.

 

“and so zeus was going to kill me. he was going to throw me into the ocean and strike me with lightning a hundred times more painful than any mortal damage. and i really deserved it! but,” he takes in a breath. “he changed his mind. he decided he would make me mortal and strip me of any title i’d ever held. but that wasn’t enough, so he’s made me complete quests just to be able to become human and... die. i’m not very good at all of this, though. i’ve been stuck on them for hundreds of years now and i’ve just... given up. who cares at this point? i used to want to become mortal to stay with humans i’ve grown fond of, but i’ve always been too far away, too backlogged in challenges.” 

 

yunho looks down to where sunwoo’s leg is swinging right beside his, their feet occasionally bumping against one another. “and even if there was a mortal i loved enough for that, their lifetime would be up by the time i finished everything. i couldn’t keep them waiting like that.” 


	7. trust me, i know what i'm doing (not even god knows that)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> bomin raises his hand. "i have just one question: what the hell?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> howdy! it's been a: hot sec? 
> 
> school's been killin me.. but whoops. here's some more short drabbles, just like the ones i did for chapter three? i think these are kinda shorter and the only one that's really been like.. fleshed out is the last one w/ kiwook.. whoops.. 
> 
> also for "tendency + edge': i Know they dont take the act in korea, i Know that. but look.. the reason i put that was bc yunho's just a smart boy tryna go to college in america ok just roll with it thanks.. and again, these arent all from the same timeline, but also they could be, its just however u wanna read it 
> 
> n e way if theres any that yall would like to see expanded on then just.. let me know.. mayhaps i'll get around to it 
> 
> (also im kinda trying to revive the twt account this year so.. @2000ztfln)

**bet + pension**

“i will bet my whole life’s earnings from here on out on this,” eric throws down a 10,000 won bill, and felix puts down one as well. jaemin squints his eyes, scanning the few of them scattered around the lunch table, and pull out a 50,000 won bill from his wallet.

 

**radio + pin ( & detective + shot)**

“so, if the radio signals were picked up from here,” chani points a finger towards a red pin pressed into map, “then the fact they found the body all the way over here—,” his finger moves to a blue pin, on the complete opposite side of the map, “makes no sense.”

 

"and, plus, people said they heard the shots on the other side of the park, near where we picked up the signals! but that's nowhere near the body, and this place is too busy for someone to drag a body across the entire property and not have anyone notice," bomin squawks. 

 

**orange + vegetation**

“that doesn’t look normal. what is this, the lorax?” donghyuck picks up a vibrant, orange leaf, squinting at it and holding it up to the sun. after a few moments, he scoffs and tosses it back to the ground.

 

“it’s fall, donghyuck,” comes renjun’s voice from a few yards away. the vegetation under his feet is a mix of yellow, red, and orange, slightly faded from the time spent under the shade. “y’know, the season where leaves change colors and all of that?”

 

**bargain + wave**

haechan argues with the ocean for what seems like an eternity, shouting and yelling and kicking at the tide that nips his ankles. he must shout something the sea doesn’t like, for a wave crashes over him, drenching him in seawater. he doesn’t move from his spot. eventually, he retreats back up the beach to where the others are sat, having been watching the scene before them unfold.

 

“the ocean won’t let us go tonight,” he whispers. he sloshes past the group, wringing out his shirt and jacket all the while. as if it were agreeing, a wave comes up and shoots a seashell right at the back of donghyuck’s head.

 

**ghostwriter + spit**

“special announcement! i ghost-wrote the entirety of your faves’ discographies. i’m the reason they spit such fire. you’re welcome!” han shouts his entrance as he comes through the door, and it only takes a second before a slipper comes hurling towards his face.

 

“you wish! it was me,” is all haechan has to say.

 

 **precision + nut** (lmao)

“here, here, watch this,” jaemin says. he places an acorn in his slingshot and aims before pulling the rubber band back. sanha watches in near amazement as he knocks a cup off the wooden railing around 30 feet away.

 

**surround + flour**

sunwoo doesn’t know what he did to deserve this. he’s been a nice, kind friend. he’s helped others when they’ve needed it and been a selfless, encouraging human being. sure, he’s a little stubborn and has had to say some things that weren’t very nice, but that’s life! and he always helped him mom with chores and taking care of his little sister and he’s been a good student and a good son.

 

so why, why on earth does he wake up covered in vaseline and surrounded by flour?

 

**zone + seat**

jisung is a little zoned out when hyunjoon marches up to him and stands to his side for a moment, only to situate himself on top of jisung. “uh, get off. that’s my lap.”

 

“fuck off, not anymore. it’s my seat now.”

 

there’s no way hyunjoon is strong, not when he’s so lithe compared to jisung, but yet he doesn’t budge as jisung pushes against his back. jisung starts to flail, whining and complaining about how _hyunjoon is so heavy, my legs are breaking, get off, is this even allowed,_ but his cries fall on deaf ears.

 

hyunjoon shuts him up by turning sideways in his lap and throwing his arms around his neck, resting his chin on jisung’s head. “be quiet, it’s cold. take the affection.”

 

**laundry + integrity**

“maybe, and lets really consider this option, maybe the washing machines in this household are just shitty! maybe it’s not just me,” comes sunwoo’s soft-spoken remark from his spot in front of the laundry room door.

 

“oh my god,” renjun drags a hand across his own face. “did you break the washing machine again? did you really?”

 

“no! i didn’t, it just.. it broke itself.” he sighs and turns back into the laundry room, and a minute passes before his voice reappears. “i mean, i’m pretty sure it’s not _that_ broken. the lid for it just won’t... won’t do right.”

 

**tendency + edge**

maybe yunho has a tendency to go over the edge. only a little. just a teeny-tiny bit. more often than not, it’s with his studying. but you can’t blame him, you really can’t, not when the ksat is in three days and he’s yet to get act scores back.

 

(really, he didn’t need to take the act. he didn’t. dawon told him not to, but, of course, yunho responded with a ‘fuck you, i’ll do what i want’ and promptly spent almost 57,000 won paying for the test.)

 

and of course he cries a bit when he gets his scores back. his composite is a 33 and it’s better than he could’ve hoped for and his english is a thirty-six. dawon holds him while he cries and whispers about how proud he is, yadi-yada. yunho wasn’t paying attention, really.

 

**bathroom + choke**

for the longest, kiwook had gone throughout life thinking he’d be healthy forever. out of his friend group, he was the one least familiar with disease. the most he had seen of a hospital was whenever he went with dongju to his endocrinologist and neurologist appointments. he was a fine, healthy kid with no qualms over it.

 

until, y’know, he wasn’t.

 

maybe it had been building up or maybe it was out of the blue, but either way it grips onto him with a force unrecognizable. he’s in school, it’s first hour, and it hits him all of a sudden but his eyes are heavy and aching with fatigue, and maybe, just maybe, he’ll go to the nurse to get a little nap in. his head’s hurting anyway, and it’s a little hard to concentrate.

 

his teacher pauses in the lesson for a few minutes, and so kiwook takes the prime opportunity to swipe a pass from her. he can hardly get the word out before she’s waving her hand at him, and scribbling something down on a piece of paper. “you’ve been looking bad lately, go get some rest. i’ll let you make up the work later.”

 

he’s a little surprised; she’s not usually this concerned about students and their health, but he gives her a nod and slight smile, thanking her and reassuring her that all he needs is a little rest. and so out the door he goes, making his way down to the first floor and into the nurse’s room. no one else is in there, thankfully, so the nurse comes up to take his pass.

 

she deems the note to be real and points him toward the exam table behind the thin, white curtains. “what seems to be the problem, kid?”

 

kiwook sits himself on it, frowning at how cold it feels through the fabric of his clothes. “i just feel really exhausted, and i’ve got a headache. it was kind of hard to concentrate in class, so my teacher told me to come down here and rest some.”

 

“i see,” she says, and gets some papers and a stethoscope from off her desk. she puts on the headset and feels around on his chest to find his heartbeat. “must’ve stayed up late last night, huh?”  


“no, not really,” he scrunches his nose at the cold metal that touches underneath his shirt. “i’ve been sleeping a lot lately, actually. just been really exhausted for no reason.”

 

“uh-huh. take a deep breath,” the diaphragm of the tool moves over his lungs. “have the headaches been happening with the fatigue?”

 

“i guess, yeah.”

 

the nurse removes the stethoscope and disappears into her supply area, re-emerging with a water bottle, a pack of peanut butter crackers, and two pills. “probably just excess exhaustion. take this ibuprofen and eat this, and try to get a little nap in.”

 

kiwook nods, grateful, and throws back the pills, chasing it with a few gulps of water. he moves to the cot, hidden behind a wooden divider, and kicks off his shoes and sets them by the edge of it.

 

the sheet and blanket are thin, but he appreciates the cover and slight warmth it brings. he didn’t notice he was cold.

he spends a few minutes on his phone, scrolling along instagram and responding to texts, and pops his earbuds in. it’s a calm day and he needs to relax, so he clicks on an indie playlist. apparently, it really does the trick, because he doesn’t remember anything after that.

 

he wakes up a little sweaty, but he writes it off as the blanket. it’s thin, but he’s been a little sensitive to temperature anyway.

 

it’s only around noon, so he was out for three hours, and feels fine enough to go to the rest of his classes. the nurse checks on him one last time and sends him out with another bottle of water and a note for the teacher, and he starts on his merry way back to his classroom.

 

the walk down the hall is fine until his stomach starts to lurch, and then it all goes to hell, really. the dizzy spell hits him hard and he’s struggling to even remember where the bathroom is, much less reach it. it’s just around the corner and he thinks, at least something is going his way today, as he stumbles into a stall and throws himself over the toilet, retching up everything’s eaten that morning.

 

he chokes on the bile and tears come out of nowhere but he’s crying hard, gagging, and an absolute mess. he sits and leans against the stall for nearly an eternity, purely exhausted, and he’d have probably fallen asleep right there if it weren’t for the parade of voices that suddenly enter the bathroom. he gathers himself, even checks in his phone camera to make sure he doesn’t look too bad, and flushes the toilet before leaving the stall.

 

it’s a group of freshmen, and they bow slightly, their eyes trained on him and their conversation halted. kiwook ignores the silence and slowly washes his hands.

 

“uh, _sunbae_? are you alright?” one of them asks. kiwook grabs some paper towels and doesn’t look up at him.

 

“of course! i’m good, great. why?”

 

“well... you just don’t look too good, that’s all.”

 

kiwook just gives him a thankful smile and assures him he’s alright, patting his shoulder before striding out of the bathroom.

 

the throbbing pain in his head and unease in his stomach says otherwise. 

 


End file.
